Medicated to Death Infographic
Medicated to DEATH Americans are increasingly prescribed medications that help them get more sleep, feel less stress. and also have more energy to accomplish a seemingly endless list of daily tasks. But is this really a good thing? Let’s take a look at how overmedication can be affecting our health.
State of Health
How much medication are we taking, and why?
- Nearly 7 in 10 Americans who take at least one prescription drug (1)
- 1 in 5 People who take five or more prescriptions (1)
- 100 million Americans affected by chronic pain (2)
- 80% Proportion of the world’s painkillers consumed in the United States (3)
- 1 in 4 American adults who are unhappy with their sleep patterns (4)
- 60 million Prescriptions Americans filled for sleeping pills in 2011, up from 47 million in 2006 (5)
- 4 in 5 Americans prescribed antibiotics each year (6)
The Risks of Overmedication
- 40% People who become addicted to benzodiazepines (like some sleeping pills or anxiety medication) after taking them daily for more than 6 weeks (7)
- Every 19 minutes, a person dies from prescription drug overdose (3)
- 2 million Annual number of drug-resistant bacterial infections in the U.S. (8)
Why Are We Medicated to Death: Causes of Overmedication?
Every patient is different, but some common themes emerge in considering potential overmedication.
- Increase in chronic conditions, like heart disease and also diabetes
- Rapidly aging population, which means more people need to take medications
- Cost of expensive testing vs. prescription costs
Sources:
1. https://www.drugfree.org
2. https://www.painmed.org
3. https://www.cnn.com
4. https://www.huffingtonpost.com
5. https://well.blogs.nytimes.com
6. https://www.cbsnews.com
7. https://www.rcpsych.ac.uk
8. https://www.cdc.gov
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